Second Chance
by ShewolfAngelus
Summary: Season 5 before "99 Problems". Lorena has spent the last 10 Earth years in Hell. Upon orders from a faithful angel, Castiel has pulled her out and given her choice: Redemption or Damnation. Will she work with the Winchester boys and redeem herself?
1. Chapter 1: Case of the Strange

Chapter 1: Case of the Strange

"Why are they always crazy bitches?" Dean questioned from behind the wheel of the Impala.

Sam had no response for his brother. Castiel had specific orders for them to find a woman under the name Jane Doe at St. Luke's Hospital, which was just north of Bobby's place.

"There is a war out there Sam. The angels aren't helping…God isn't there…we're on our own," he ranted on.

They had been to Heaven and back, literally. They talked to the angel who Castiel thought would have the answers as to God's whereabouts. As it turned out, Joshua told them that God knew what was going on, and he doesn't want to intervene anymore in the Apocalypse.

"Let's just do it and get her over to Bobby's place like Cas said, alright?" Sam hoped Dean would calm down.

"If Cas wants her so bad how come he doesn't pop in and get her?"

Sam hadn't thought about that… "I don't know…good question. There must be a reason. She must be someone important, maybe an empty vessel?"

The brothers were instantly reminded of Raphael's empty vessel at St. Pete's in Maine.

"Maybe," Dean replied, "But I hope not. I'm tired of this angels and demon crap, I really am. They just love to smack us right in the middle of it. If we can't stop the Devil then to Hell with the world."

Sam wasn't really paying attention as he looked at the map using the light of his cell phone. It seemed like he was the one with hope…that only he believed they could beat this.

"She's not an empty vessel," Castiel announced from the backseat of the Impala.

Dean swerved the car into the other lane of traffic as the angel's sudden appearance shocked him.

"Could you NOT do that while I'm driving! You could get us all killed."

"Then I'll just bring you back to life."

"Beside the point," Dean growled irritated. "Okay, so you gonna share with the class this time? Or are we being surprised."

The angel learned forward, "I pulled her out of Hell. It wasn't easy…and I lost track of her…"

Sam and Dean laughed.

"You _lost_ her?" Dean clarified.

"Yes, it happens. You are to bring her straight to Bobby's. It's very important Dean. I've been given the power to restore her and the longer we wait the less likely it will work. I will meet you at Bobby's."

Castiel disappeared from the backseat before Dean could make a snide remark.

"Guess we have our answer," Sam noted closed his phone.

When they rolled into Aberdeen it didn't take long to find St. Luke's. The boys changed their clothes and posed as doctors to gain access and blend in with the staff.

Sam's instincts led him to check the computers. There were three Jane Doe's on the roster. One was in her late sixties, another was recently transferred. The third was a mid-twenties woman who was brought in just recently.

"Room 150," he said before closing out and walking away with Dean.

"Alright, now how are we going to get her out of here?" the older brother asked.

"Yeah, I was just thinking the same. Her file…says she's being sedated. We are either going to have to wheel her out, or carry her."

They sighed at their dilemma. Dean picked up the chart on the door reading 150 and walked in as Sam was close behind.

"Hi there Ms. Doe," he said flipping through the pages of the chart as he pretended to be a real doctor. "Holy crap…"

"What?" he asked.

"Dude she's really messed up. Did you read that part? Says she attacked a nurse when they brought her in. Grabbed her by the hair and just pulled it out…her scalp along with it. It took ten people to get her down."

"It's a good thing she's knocked out."  
"Yeah…" Dean agreed.

"It might be easier than I thought…We can just wheel her out…she's already restrained to the bed. I'll take her to the back exit and throw her in the car."

"I had no idea you liked your women tied up, Sam." Dean laughed at the straight look Sam gave him. "Just awesome. I'll go move the car…" he handed the file to Sam before he left.

He flipped through it and gave a confused look. Dean was pulled from Hell and he didn't have these issues…This woman sounded like a wild animal. Sam put the file next to her on the bed and started to wheel her out of the hospital. It was easy to do since it was so early in the morning…the sun wasn't even up yet.

Carefully he took off the restraints and placed her in the backseat quickly.

"Let's go," he said after getting back in the car.

Dean pounded the gas pedal and took off to Bobby's house. As he drove, he peaked to the backseat, "God I hope she doesn't wake up."

The boys really didn't think of that. If she was to wake up…what was stopping her from attacking them?

Luckily they never found out- she was out the entire time to Bobby's place. Sam carried her to the door and Bobby greeted them from his wheelchair…Cas wasn't there yet.

He placed her on the couch and once Bobby got a look at her it was like a switch had flipped in his head. Bobby quickly rolled backwards and grabbed a flask of holy water from a table.

"That's….that's not possible…That's not human…"

"Woah woah…" Dean began, "It's okay Bobby, chill out, Cas said he pulled her out of Hell. She's not a demon..."

"Not a demon my ass…It's not possible Dean, I watched her get _pulled_ into Hell," his hands were noticeably shaking and as was his jaw as he spoke.

"Come again?" Sam raised his brows.

"You heard me boy," his voice was cracking up, but his eyes never left the woman lying on the couch.

When the woman started to stir on the couch the boys jumped back five feet.

"Where the Hell is Cas? What are we supposed to do when this thing wakes up and tries to kill us?" Dean complained.

"Watch your tongue!" Bobby raised his voice, "Even if she is a demon you have no god damned right to talk about her like that. SHE WAS A PERSON YOU IDGIT!"

Sam silently motioned to Dean and Bobby…. The woman kept her eyes closed as she touched her face. It wasn't the normal way a person touched their face, it was more like an examination of her face. She then opened her eyes and sat up in confusion. Untamed. That was the only word that came to mind.

"She's gotta be possessed…Even if your angel friend pulled Lorena out of Hell….SHE isn't…can't be…Lorena anymore. It's been too long," Bobby was becoming terrified at the thought of having to hurt her.

When the woman saw Sam and Bobby her eyes turned black and she leaped up from the couch with her fingers spread out as if they were claws. Dean suddenly jumped in front of the two to protect them from the crazy bitch.

Dean pulled out Ruby's knife and was ready to use it.

Bobby saw the knife and was yelling at Dean to step down as hard as he could.

But when the woman saw Dean she recoiled. She was stopped dead in her tracks and curled herself into a ball back on the couch in fear of Dean.

He lowered the knife and looked behind him for answers, "I've never seen a demon do that."

Sam stepped forward, "I think she's afraid of you Dean…She was ready to tear us apart, but when she saw you…her eyes…I think she was terrified."

He smiled, "don't I wish I had that effect on all demons?"

Neither Sam nor Bobby seemed thrilled about this discovery. This wasn't right…in fact nothing about this was right to Bobby.

"Think about it…Lorena just came from Hell, Dean….a LONG time in Hell. Maybe she recognizes you?" Bobby lifted his hat a little knowing this was a sensitive subject with him.

"I've never seen her before, I swear" Dean looked at Sam and Bobby.

"You sure about that?" Bobby didn't quite believe him.

Dean looked at her and sighed. The flashes returned as they sorted through the faces of the people in Hell. It made him feel empty and cold as he reflected deeply. Yes….he did remember her now.

"She was the first one…"

"First one what?" Sam tried to look into Dean's eyes for answers.

"The first one I ripped apart when Alastair took me off the rack. I enjoyed it…she cried and begged me not to do it, but I was hurting so much. I took out my revenge on her. I thought nothing of it at the time."

Cas had appeared close to Lorena and heard what Dean had said. "By the time we found her she had become a demon. The deed can be undone, but it is up to her."

The three men looked at Castiel in surprise. Sam and Dean weren't sure why the angels would be looking for this woman…who Bobby happened to know. All three were contemplating the big question: "Why now?"

The angel raised his fingers to the woman's head. He was doing something to her. After a minute or so Castiel stood back up and looked at them, "I've healed her mind…My orders from a loyal friend were clear: pull her from Hell and offer her a choice. Bobby can probably explain this better than I, but I must go now…"

Lorena seemed different as she slowly stood up once the angel was gone. Her olive skin looked golden brown in the early morning sun. Although it was a little matted, her dark brown hair went down to her midback. It wasn't until she looked right them then did they realize just how green her eyes were…since previously they were black.

"Bobby?" she spoke softly taking baby steps towards him…still wearing her hospital clothes.

"Is it really you?" he asked in disbelief as he wheeled closer to her. Tears were forming in the hunter's eyes.

"Yes…it is…I swear it." Lorena wrapped her arms around him and they embraced each other for a moment.

"Uh…Bobby, mind telling us something?" Dean pressed.

Bobby turned away and took a long nervous drink as he ignored Dean. None of this even seemed real…it had just been so long.

"You look…like you haven't aged a day. Your father…he would be so happy to see you," Bobby continued as he ignored Sam and Dean's demanding looks.

"I know. What happened…it was his worst fear. And that demon…I heard how it tortured him till he went crazy," She lowered her head, "he told me everything."

"Martin was a good man. Losing you crushed him….you were all he had Lorena. Without you…well he just lost it."

Dean scratched his cheek as a hunter named Martin sounded familiar.

"Martin?...you mean…Martin, Martin? Loony bin, ex-hunter Martin?"

Both Lorena and Bobby glared at Dean and Sam sighed at how careless his brother was sometimes with his words.

"Yeah you nitwit. Lorena was…is his daughter."

"Okay, okay…So…you going to tell us what happened?"

Bobby relaxed back in his chair and looked at the boys. "Albuquerque. We were down there chasing a lead. Me, your father, Martin and his daughter. We had no idea what we were up against. There were demonic omens and John was dead set on it. It was too dangerous for him to be going alone, so I followed and I called Martin for backup. They met us there. When we got there…well there were Demons….they were everywhere and we stuck out like sore thumbs. We were trapped and didn't stand a chance. They attacked us and we fought and beat them, but not without losing Lorena. We were able to track her to a building just outside of town. It was a massacre. There were bodies all over the place: women, children, babies…It was nasty. It wasn't until we reached the basement that we realized what they were doing. They were opening the gates to Hell."

Bobby paused a moment to look up, "Sound familiar to you two? There are gates all over this damned place and this was the one in Albuquerque. They were able to do it…It took the blood of a hundred innocent people, but they did it. Rufus came and saved all our asses…shooting them with salt rounds and making it rain holy water. We really thought we were winning, but at the same time all that bad stuff was making a break for it. John and Lorena were trying to get the doors closed when something grabbed her by the foot and pulled her right in. Martin tried to go after her but John, Rufus and I got the gates closed before he could throw himself in. We then made sure it wouldn't happen again and we all went our separate ways…John went back to you boys, Martin went home for a while, and Rufus I didn't hear from him until he told me about Bela."

Lorena was quietly walking around the room…looking at pictures and books as Bobby talked. It seemed like a lot had changed since she pulled into Hell. Sam and Dean looked different…older, and kinda charming. She glanced at a newspaper on Bobby's desk…the year struck her…it was 2010. She was only in Hell for ten years? No, that couldn't be right.

Sam and Dean felt bad for Bobby and Martin. Martin was a mess when they saw him and they never discovered the reason for it. Now they knew. They were unusually silent…especially Dean. He was still a little preoccupied with the images in his head of ripping her apart. It only hurt more to know she was a friend of the family…Did Alastair know this?

"It was horrible Bobby…I tried to tell them. They laughed at me...they ripped me apart like a doll. I lost count of the years…of the decades and centuries I spent being torn. Then there was Dean. I heard lots about Dean and about the day he left…cuz see that was the day I said yes...that was the day I gave in. Here I was in Hell for no damned reason, but the angel pulled him out?" Lorena spoke only in Bobby's direction.

Dean mumbled something and left the room. This caused Sam and Bobby to trade looks once he had left.

"He was given a second change! You have no idea how angry I was. Year after year…after year…after year of torture, and for what? I thought…maybe then they'd save me." Lorena shook as she started to cry. "So I carved…I bled…I ripped and I tore at them. I became an animal…worse than an animal. I even saw John there…He told me to hold on, that he would get us out one day. He made it out of the pit, but by then I was too weak."

Sam took a seat on the couch next to her, "You're safe now…Castiel is giving you a second chance. This is what you've been waiting for. Granted it could have come sooner, but they must see something in you."

"I'm tired Sam. Do you know what I've done to people? My father was a hunter and I know what demons are. I can't be trusted. This second chance business is a joke; the angels are toying with me," her eyes went black…making Sam jump in surprise, "there is no going back."

Bobby looked about ready to explode with anger and frustration, "Do you really believe the crap that's coming out of your mouth? You are a natural hunter young lady….crap like this is part of the job. You toughen up and you take every chance you've got, you hear me? If the angels are giving you a second chance you better damn well try because that's how your daddy raised you."

Lorena stood up with blackened eyes and glared at Bobby…her anger rose. The lights flickered and the walls shook…Dean came running back in to see what was happening.

When she saw Dean she reached out a hand and threw him against the wall and held him there. Her hand started to tighten into a fist…choking Dean.

"You have no idea Bobby. Don't even pretend you understand…." Lorena loosened her fist and Dean dropped to the floor.

With no one willing to stop her, Lorena left Bobby's house and stole one of his cars.

Dean rubbed the area around his neck and held a dry cough until he caught his breath.

"Let her go…if that's what she wants then fine," Dean said before he noticed the glares Sam and Bobby were giving him.

Bobby started wheeling towards the door, "No…it's not fine."

Sam jumped, "It's okay Bobby…you and Dean and stay here...I'll go find her."

"I'm coming with Sam," Dean pulled out his keys.

"Do you really think that's wise? You scare the crap out of her. Besides…I think I have an idea where she going."


	2. Chapter 2: Test of Faith

Chapter 2: Test of Faith

Lorena started to drive towards Oklahoma. A demon or not…she wanted to see her father before it was too late. She knew there was a risk of hurting him more by seeing him like this, but she wanted to apologize and she wanted to tell him that it wasn't his fault for what happened.

When she turned on the radio it announced the most depressing news: lightning storms, tornados, and deadly flu outbreaks…All omens. After about ten minutes of listening, she turned off the radio and continued to drive in silence.

As she looked up in her review mirror she caught sight of car following close to her bumper. Lorena sighed as she sped up and took a sharp right turn down the middle of a field.

She was aware that it was Sam…she didn't want a confrontation with the Winchester. Lorena just wanted to be left alone to do this and then she would return.

Sam wasn't giving up that easy. He followed her into the field and pushed more on the gas. His car was a lot faster than hers, so there was no way she was going to get away.

He managed to pull up alongside the passenger door and shouted at her to pull over.

Lorena could hear him but she didn't make eye contact. She figured he would give up sooner or later and just let her go…besides…why would they want to help her? It was her choice to make and she wanted to do this.

Sam hit the gas harder and started to pass her…then he suddenly got in front of her before slowly hitting the breaks. This caused Lorena to tap his bumper as he started to slow down.

This was useless…She thought about turning the car around and even tried to…but when she hit his bumper the car somehow got attached to his and she couldn't get free.

"Damnit!" Lorena cursed and opened the driver door with her foot still on the gas. On the count of three she lifted her foot and threw herself from the car and tumbled into the field.

Sam noticed the car behind him was slowly down and that the door was open. He brought his car to a quick stop and jumped out to chase her down. He ran as fast as he could to catch up with her.

"I just wanna talk! You don't understand Lorena; we wanna help you!"

She didn't care…and she started to run faster once she noticed he was catching up.

Then Lorena plowed right into a guy who appeared in front of her when she turned back from looking at Sam. She fell to the ground and looked up from the brush to see a man in a khaki trench coat looking down at her.

Sam finally caught up, "Thanks Cas."

The angel said nothing to Sam and continued to look down at Lorena. "You may be able to run from them, but you can't run from me. You have a role to play Lorena, whether you want to or not. Redemption is a choice, but we will not let you consider any other option. If you accept this I promise you can meet with your father once we are done here."

She squinted as the sun made it difficult to see their faces. Lorena stood back up and dusted herself off. This whole speech of his made it sound like she had no choice, but she willing to try once the angel spoke of her father.

"You swear?"

Castiel tilted his head and looked at her curiously, "I wouldn't lie to you."

"Oh….angel….right…" She looked at Sam, "Fine…I'll meet you in the car."

Sam was a little suspicious but he knew Castiel wouldn't let her run off, so he started walking towards their cars and tried to get her car detached from his.

"Do I have to work with Dean Winchester?" she asked.

Cas frowned. It seemed as though he already knew this was potential problem.

"Yes. Think of it as a test of faith. With redemption comes forgiveness. You must find it in you to forgive Dean and yourself for what happened in Hell. What you don't realize Lorena is that your one of the strongest humans I've ever seen. The angels talked about you…The girl dragged into Hell. They were impressed by your strength and it was a sad day in Heaven when you lost hope and said yes. Hope was coming for you…but other issues came up…the seals, Lucifer, and the war right now. While you committed some horrible crimes in Hell, it's an honor to meet you. I just wanted you to know that…" Cas said before he turned around and started to walk away.

Lorena was speechless. Angels talked about her? Impressed by her strength? An honor? All this information was swimming in her head as the angel started to walk away.

"Wait! Castiel," she caught up to him. "I'm confused…What do I have to do?"

"Bobby will have your assignment," he said before disappearing.

"I need to learn that trick," she sighed as she walked back to the cars and got back in her own to follow Sam back to Bobby's house.

Sam called them and told them what went down…and then Bobby told him that he had assignment for the three of them. Something big.

"We're on our way…" Sam hanged up and continued to drive.

To him this was different from working with Ruby….even though Sam swore to himself that he'd never work with another demon again…after opening Lucifer's cage by accident. That mistake alone would haunt him for the rest of his seemingly short life. If only he had listened to Dean then he wouldn't have drank the demon blood, lost his brother's trust, and brought on the end of the world. If only.

Patience was wearing thin now…and their options were disappearing. God wasn't helping, the colt didn't work, and Death was nowhere to be found. Sam was waiting for a miracle…there just had to be some other way to stop Lucifer, and they just had to find it. He just hoped they would find it before something bad will happen…like Dean breaking down and saying "yes" to Michael. Without Dean by his side…Sam didn't know if he could keep the Devil at bay.

Once they got back to Bobby's house Sam led the way back inside. Dean already had the Impala packed up for the road.

When they walked in Dean looked at Sam and gave a small smile to Lorena. "Glad your back…now we can hit the road. We got a job in Missouri. They've got omens up the yin-yang...Bobby thinks it's some high level demon or it could be Death. Either way it's worth checking out."

Lorena stood silent. She remembered what Castiel told her and that meant there was something serious going on.

She nodded to them, but Bobby asked to see her in the other room.

Once they were alone in the kitchen he spoke quietly, "If all goes well I probably won't see you again."

She smiled and leaned down to give Bobby a hug, "I'm going to try my best."

He let go of her, "No…you're going to do more than try—you're going to succeed. If you don't do it for yourself then at least do it for your poor dad. He blames himself every day. I think he'd be more at peace if he knew you were safe."

Lorena nodded, "I understand sir. I don't want to cause anyone anymore pain. It was nice seeing you again Bobby…If I see John I'll tell him hi for you."

Bobby nodded as he looked down at the ground choked up, "now get of here."

She met the boys outside and slid into the backseat of the Impala. It was a little dusty, but she didn't complain…instead she laid down and stared up at the roof.

"So you guys are hunters now? Just like your dad…" she smiled. "I probably would have done the same. I don't think other people understand…hunting is just in the family. You can't escape what's out there."

Sam and Dean agreed…and Sam knew all too well that there is no escape from the family business. They were meant for this life and any other life wouldn't seem right.

"Man….doesn't seem like it's been ten years." She looked around and sighed, "So have you guys figured out a way to stop Lucifer? I've heard things….Although you wouldn't believe it….but Hell is pretty split on whether Lucifer being free is good thing or not. Power scares demons. Lucifer is powerful and some demons are staying in Hell because they're afraid of what he'll do to them." Lorena sighed, "If you guys don't trust me or anything I'm okay with that. I know what Ruby did to you Sam. Believe me…I was just a hunter like you guys. I worked with my dad on some jobs…worked with your dad twice…and with Bobby. I didn't belong in Hell…I was dragged kicking and screaming. I'd love me some pay back if you know what I mean."

"Sounds like my kind of ass kicking," Dean said before he turned up the music.

Sam looked back at Lorena and saw her looking at the roof of the car. Part of him thought back, far back, to when he was dating Jessica. He wondered if Jessica would have become a hunter had he told her what his family really did.

"Blackwater, Missouri….here we come," he stepped harder on the gas once they were on the open road for the seven hour drive.

After about five hours of driving, Dean decided to pull off the road in Tracy, Missouri. It was a small town and he found just the place to crash for the night. The three of them had come to realize they weren't prepared for what lied ahead. They were about two hours outside Blackwater and that was good enough for him…they wanted to be fresh for this and well prepared.

"I don't know about you guys…but I'm starving and tired. You two get the place set up…I'm gonna get us food."

Dean let Sam take the bags out of the trunk before taking off.

Lorena carried a bag as she and Sam headed to the front desk for a room.

"We're pretty full tonight guys…the only room I have available has two queens," the manager said as he smiling at the couple.

Sam gave a confused look at first, "Oh…uhm…" then it occurred to him this manager thought they were together. "No…it's fine, we'll take it."

Lorena tried hard not to laugh at Sam's discomfort.

"Smooth…real smooth," she chuckled as they started to walk to their room.

"Just open the door…" he sighed rubbing his eyes.

She opened the door and threw down the bag on the bed closest to the door and fell down on the second bed.

"So…salt lines…load up the guns…Computer?"

Sam nodded as she listed the things that needed to be taken care of to make sure they'd be safe. The odds were pretty good that word had traveled about Lorena…and curiosity always drew the demons closer to them.

"I've got the computer. Besides I think it's….kinda for the best," she said as she failed to make eye contact and pulled Sam's laptop out of a bag.

As she sat at the table doing research on the area of Blackwater, Sam began making salt lines by the window and door. He then thought about making a devil's trap, but he didn't really find it necessary so started doing the weapons inventory.

Every so often she'd look up from the computer to check his progress…. She stared at the screen and thought about the angel…was she really that strong? No…not anymore— now she was weak, demon filth, and Hell left a permanent mark on her.

"You must be pretty strong…your dad talked a lot about you guys," Lorena spoke as she began clicking through documents. "He said Dean was fearless…that he could a job done any job, and with no questions. And you," she smiled, "between you and me…I think he was more proud of what you had become. To live a normal life and be so smart…He used laugh when my dad said that you'd be the one taking care of him when he gets old."

Sam laughed, "yeah right….I can't even picture dad not being a hunter."

"I couldn't either…" She looked up and met his eyes before sighing. "Times just change…circumstances…fate…destiny…whatever they're calling it these days."

Sam was wondering how much things had changed for her. For him ten years ago was a long time…so much had happened to him in that time. Dean was only in Hell for a four months and it messed him up pretty bad for a while. It made him wonder what Lorena was hiding. As he did the math quickly in his head he realized ten years in hell on Earth was one thousand two hundred years in Hell. Then…if she said yes after hearing Dean was saved…it meant she had been torturing souls for the last one hundred and eighty years. He couldn't imagine it.

Lorena put her feet up on another chair as she watched Sam clean his gun.

"Such a shame we get no break or something, you know?"

Based on Sam's reaction she elaborated.

"Dude…I've been in Hell for what seems like eternity. I'm topside now…I don't know…just kinda wanted to take things in before…"

Sam looked back up at her a little speechless, "Uhm…Being removed is part of the job. Trust me…I'd give anything to have time to read, see movies, and sightsee. The Apocalypse is here…The case is top priority. We can't afford to get sidetracked."

She sighed and nodded her head, "You're right…" It made her chuckle a little. "You sound just like him."

Dean suddenly came through the door sucking on a chocolate shake with three bags of fast food. When he sat them down he continued to drink from the shake as he looked over at Sam, and then Lorena. He gave a "hm" before sitting down in the seat she previously had her feet on.

Sam rolled his eyes as he had come to know what his brother meant with that sound. He ignored it, "Windows and door are salt lined and the weapons are about ready…"

With Dean back Lorena drifted back in silence. It was easy to be herself around Sam, but she still felt the need to be on guard around Dean. It made things awkward and difficult…and even more so that he wouldn't talk about what happened.

"Have you got anything?" Dean finally asked her.

"No news on who our big bad demon is, but I've ruled out Death. Working with close to no leads here…I think it's safe to say it's someone with a high pay grade…so that puts us at a thousand possible demons," Lorena said as she moved the computer out of the way so she could eat.

"Your right…we need more information. Maybe you can be our inside man…I mean girl," Dean quickly reworded himself after she glared at him. "Serious though, just don't be getting yourself caught."

Sam looked at him surprised; this wasn't like Dean to volunteer someone else to be put on the front line.

"Are you sure about this?" He questioned.

"Of course I'm sure Sam…now eat your salad." Dean sounded firm, like he knew what he was doing, but Sam knew something else was up and he couldn't really ask about it in front of Lorena.

The three of them ate in complete silence until Dean's phone started to ring. He checked the caller ID before answering:

"You got anything?"

Lorena and Sam could hear Bobby griping on the other line.

"You show me more respect BOY and say hello before you demand something from me!"

Dean's eyes widened, "Alright. Hi Bobby, you got anything?"

As Bobby began to talk the expressions on Dean's face changed. This wasn't good news.


	3. Chapter 3:Lust in the Eyes of the Guilty

Chapter 3: Lust in the Eyes of the Guilty

They sat at the table in silence...Dean was just staring at his half-eaten burger, Sam was slowly chewing through a piece of lettuce, and Lorena was munching on some French fries. This little task had suddenly turned into an impossible mission...an almost suicidal mission.

Sam and Dean tried to call Castiel, but there was no answer.

"We're not doing this... you hear me?" Dean smacked the table as he brought himself out of his dead stare.

Sam put his fork down and looked at Dean, "You know we can't do that. Castiel knew about this— he knew it was going to be him and that's why Lorena is here. If we don't do this, then we fail her."

Lorena was kind of shocked at the anger that was coming out of Sam as he tried to put Dean back on track. She raised a brow and hoped Dean was going to agree. If not...well then she knew Sam would help her out and that gave her some comfort.

Dean got up from the table and headed out the door. The roaring sound of the Impala was heard before it sped off into the darkness.

"Dean...he's just under a lot of stress. With Michael...the other angels...more demons than we can possible handle...and no promising end in sight," Sam looked at her, hoping to reach her sympathy.

"I know...and I'm just another one of those demons aren't I?" Her anger made the lights in the motel room flicker. "I CAN'T do this on my own Sam...It's not going to be enough. I know this is a lot to ask...believe me...but you have got to understand that I can't go back there. Hell isn't something I wish upon my worst enemy."

He nodded, "He'll be back. He doesn't show it, but he cares too much about you to just up and leave or do anything regretful."

Sam hoped his own words were true. Dean had been on the edge, and he could just tell there were times when he wanted to say 'yes' and get it over with.

"Get some rest…alright? I'm going to see what I can find on Belial," Sam offered as he grabbed his laptop and sat down on the bed.

The name- just the sound of his name made her skin crawl. Belial was the demon that pulled her into Hell…he tortured her dad, and when he got tired of that he came back and tortured her.

There were some things she already knew about the demon. He was a Prince of Hell and was known by many other names...some called him the King of Evil or the Prince of Darkness. According to him, no one was his boss…no one except for Lucifer. He controlled the reaches between Hell and Earth and knew everything about every single demon on Earth. If there was something he disagreed with then he could smite them with just a thought.

Lorena rested her head on the pillow and watched Sam type away on his laptop. It was for that last reason that she knew she didn't stand a chance against him. After all, she was still just a demon. It was quite possible that Belial knew they were coming.

Meanwhile…Dean drove himself to Platte City for some relief. It didn't take long for him to find a Pool Hall to get a drink. He took a seat, ordered himself a drink, and covered his face with his hands. Dean was tired of lying to Sam- telling him that everything was going to be fine and that he wasn't going to say yes to Michael. Instead he really felt tired, beaten down, helpless, and responsible for it all.

Dean couldn't forget that it was his actions that broke the first seal. With Lorena…and hearing her story it only made him feel worse. Not only had his dad lasted longer than him in Hell, but this innocent woman had more strength than him.

He was disgusted with himself and Lorena had reason to hate and fear him. But if this was who they were up against- it wasn't worth it. He was done being physically tortured by demons and watching his little brother deal with the mental pressures of saying yes to Lucifer.

A woman sat down at the bar next to him. She had brilliant blonde hair, heavy black eye make-up and the tightest little green cocktail dress he had ever seen. The first words that came to Dean's mind were easily 'Porn Star'. This woman was just too perfect to be at a bar in a small town in the middle of nowhere and with no man attached to her.

Alarms sounded deep within his mind that this wasn't right.

'To Hell with it…' he thought before turning to her and introducing himself.

Back at the motel room Sam put down his cell phone in frustration. He had tried calling Dean four different times and left two messages on his voicemail. Cas didn't return his calls either. But while Lorena was asleep he did manage to find some information and cleared it with Bobby.

When he finally got off the phone they had a pretty large amount of information to go over in the morning. Sam hoped Dean was coming back…and that he wasn't doing anything incredibly stupid.

Lorena then started shaking in her bed as she slept. Since she had been asleep, Sam noticed she mumbled a lot of things: twisting her body, groaned in pain, and crying. But now she was shaking and it was getting worse by the second…as the motel room started shaking.

Sam got up from his bed and sat down on the edge of hers.

"Lorena…" he shook her.

Just touching her sent him flying into the wall. Sam groaned and dusted himself off before going back over to her.

"Lorena wake-up! It's just a dream!" he shouted to her ear as he got on top of her. He hoped that holding her down could stop the shaking. If this kept going the motel room was going to collapse.

Her black eyes looked up at him and the shaking stopped.

"Sam?" she was still catching her breath as she looked at him confused. "It seemed so real. I thought he was here."

It confused him somewhat that Lorena had a soul, but was still a demon. Castiel had explained that in order to receive redemption, her soul was temporarily restored. Over time it would dissolve and all that would be left was the demon. He also said that that the demon part of her couldn't be erased until her salvation. Lorena was just as much of a freak as he was…and Sam knew he was freak.

"You almost brought the motel down on us…"

Her hand came up and touched a small cut on his head he received from the wall.

"Kiss me."

Sam didn't need any encouragement. He pressed his lips against hers and started to unbutton his plaid shirt.

Lorena could only think about his strong body on top of her…the smoothness of his skin. She sat up as much as she could to remove the clothes they had recently bought her to replace her hospital gown.

His body felt on fire for her as lowered himself onto her. This was wrong…and not something Sam would normally do, but Sam was no longer in control of his lust. Any bit of reason he had left and was clouded over by the intense passion he was feeling for her.

A dark shadow passed by their motel window. He was a tall man dressed in a fine looking suit. His black hair was shoulder length, but he kept it in a slick ponytail. It was Belial. The demon prince was responsible for this and he grinned at the sight of Sam and Lorena naked on the bed. The moonlight poured in and shined against Sam's back. Their moaning made the demon lick his lips in delight.

He briefly checked his watch and sighed a bit in disappointment. Belial disappeared—leaving the two to their sexual lust.

An almost invisible wave echoed from the motel, a wave that changed the actions and thoughts of those in its path. People in their cars were trying to run over pedestrians on the streets. Those in the streets were breaking store windows and some couples were wrapped around each other in heated lust.

There was rage in their hearts…lust in some others, and in a select few there was a twisted dose of both. The rules…everything was turned upside-down and no one escaped the demon's influence.

At dawn the clouds had risen on the town. Belial's influence could only hold for so long without his immediate presence.

Dean woke up in the backseat of his Impala fully undressed. The woman with the blonde hair was nowhere to be found…he cursed. Grabbing his cell he saw all the missed calls and voicemails from Sam and started to get worried. He thought about calling…but what would he say? Instead Dean put on his clothes, hopped into the front seat and sped off towards the motel.

He saw some strange things on his way to the motel…people were passed out in the streets and sidewalks, store windows were smashed, and some fires were still smoldering. It looked as if a riot had ensued. This fueled his worry as he parked at the motel.

He used the key to open the door and was surprised by what he saw.

The sleeping pair didn't hear Dean come in. Sam was lying on his back as Lorena was face down with her head resting close to his and an arm lying over his chest.

This was a little too much for him. Even when Sam wasn't on demon blood he seemed to have a tendency towards demons. No wonder he never seemed to be interested in the girls he brought for him.

"So…I leave and this is what you two come up with?" Dean finally announced.

Sam rubbed his eyes as he heard his voice, but really wasn't making sense of what he was saying. Then he realized the arm across his chest wasn't his own.

Lorena took back her arm and was starting to realize Dean had finally returned. She moved just a little bit and then realized….she was naked. Her cheeks blushed as she stayed under the covers.

"I'm not wearing any clothes Sam…" she whispered the hint to him.

"That makes two of us…" he whispered back.

"Look Dean…can you give us a moment?" Sam asked nervously.

He laughed, "Gettin' it on with another demon. That's incredible Sam…Repulsive…but incredible."

Lorena glared at him as the older brother returned outside.

Dean wasn't really one to talk…Dean remembered leaving the bar with the blonde and having sex in the car. The question was: What led him to do it? Of course he had many encounters with hot chicks…but he wasn't even sure that he held a decent conversation with the woman at all that night. It bothered him a little bit.

When Dean left the room Sam quickly got up and started putting on his clothes. Lorena watched him from the bed and he could feel her eyes.

"I am…so…so…very sorry. I don't know how this happened. I mean…I know how it happened…I just can't explain it."

She sighed and thought the look of confusion on Sam's face was adorable...Lorena tried to snap herself out of it.

"I do. I think Belial was in town. You see, he can have this effect on people…it drives them to lust. Oh….that means he knows we're here. Damnit!" Lorena got up and quickly put on her clothes, "we need to get out of here."

Sam was still a little taken back by the fact that Lorena knew this about Belial.

"Yeah…hold on a sec. Is there anything else you know? 'Cause Bobby and I could really use what you know."

She put her bag down on the bed and sat. Sam went and retrieved Dean for this since he had the right to know what was going on too.

"Belial is the one who pulled me into Hell. He then stayed on Earth a while…torturing my father with guilt. Guilt is part of his arsenal of weapons…guilt, wickedness, and lust. He did unimaginable things to him. When the fun had disappeared he came back to me. At that time I had already been accustomed to the torture on the rack. Day after day…but when Belial returned...we'll let's just say someone had to be the teacher of Alastair. Down in Hell they call him the King of Evil or the Prince of Darkness..."

"I bet Ozzy wouldn't be too fond of that…" Dean smirked to Sam.

"You think this is funny? We're dealing with a Prince of Hell. There are four crown Princes of Hell and Belial is one of them."

Sam remembered Bobby mentioning something about that.

"He controls the demons on Earth. He knows them…controls them…and he can end them. What he did last night, that's nothing compared to what he's capable of. He could turn this entire state into demon country and damn everyone in it to Hell. Killing him won't be easy. An exorcism is useless since he can travel between Hell and Earth freely. Rock salt, holy water, iron, the Colt, and not even Ruby's knife can harm a prince."

Dean just thought of something, "I thought Azazel was the King of Hell."

Lorena laughed, "He wanted to be…he dreamed of it I'm sure. But c'mon Dean…Azazel wasn't ruthless enough to be king. He was pathetic…killing women and giving his blood to babies? That's just sick. But you killed him didn't you Dean? Shot him with the Colt?"

The brothers looked at each other disappointed and Dean also looked really pissed off.

"Then HOW do we kill him?"

"Sam's abilities…he took down Lilith and Alastair with them. I wouldn't be surprised if they could work on him."

"Well that's not going to happen…" Dean rubbed the back of his head and started heading towards the door. "No…don't you even think about it Sammy," he turned towards his brother. "I am not going through that again. I won't let you."

Lorena picked up her bag nervously, "We need to leave here...maybe Bobby will find something while we're on the road?"

"We'll meet you in the car," Dean said as he held Sam back.

Once she was gone the older brother unloaded more. "I don't care Sam…we are not letting you drink demon blood again. I swore to myself after Famine that I would drive you two states over and lock you underground…if it meant keeping you clean."

"I know Dean…Believe me I know. Can we look at the bigger picture here? We have a really powerful demon out there, and the only sure way to destroy him is to let me do this."

When he started to turn away Sam moved in front of him. "Think of what he did to Lorena…to Martin. We have the opportunity to take down the Prince of Hell. It could distract Lucifer and buy us more time to get the rings."

Sam had a point…they were still clinging to the horsemen rings as a way of defeating Lucifer.

"We'll talk about this later. Let's get going."

Just as Dean finished his sentence they headed out the door to the car. The brothers instantly noticed something was missing…Lorena was gone.


	4. Chapter 4: Great Escape

Chapter 4: Great Escape

Lorena opened her eyes. The last thing she remembered was opening the door to the Impala. A faint pain in her head answered the question of what happened.

"Sam? Dean?" she mumbled in hopes that she had been rescued from whatever attacked her.

A laugh from the corner of the room proved her to be wrong.

"Sorry sweety…The Winchester boys aren't here."

"Belial. I take it your one of his minions? Of course you are…he always did have a thing for trampy little slut types…" Lorena grinned at the blonde woman.

She rolled her eyes, "you're just jealous of my meat suit. You're right though, I do work for Belial."

Lorena held her head as she got up from the floor. "You can't keep me here…I have just as much power as you."

The blonde's eyes looked up at the ceiling over their heads, "No…you can try, but you won't be getting very far."

It was a devil's trap over her head. Figures. She watched as the woman left her to be alone in the invisible cell. Lorena sat back down on the floor and whispered to Castiel for help. She felt so screwed.

"She's so screwed," Dean said behind the wheel as they started to drive to Blackwater. "Alright, we need a plan…Dig up anything that could help us."

Sam was trying to read from a book, but the potholes on the road made it close to impossible.

"Nothing…" he began, but Dean interrupted.

"If he knows they got her he'll be furious," he wasn't sure if he could handle a pissed off Bobby.

It didn't matter how the boys felt about talking to Bobby…because Sam's phone started to ring.

Sam casted a look to Dean after he checked the caller ID, "Hey Bobby, I was just about to call you."

Bobby ignored this and just started to tell Sam what he had found in an urgent manner, "I think I know why your angel friend brought Lorena into this. There is only one true way to defeat a prince of Hell. Listen to this: 'For he be the leader of the Sons of Darkness as Michael lead the Sons of Light. Only that of which has died, but not felt the touch of Death's cold hand and rises to live again can disarm a Prince of Hell.' It's all right here…Pretty much everything you want to know about this guy. And he's bad news Sam."

"Yeah…we know Bobby," Sam hinted around and Bobby quickly caught it.

"What do you mean you know? Is there something you boys aren't telling me? After all I do for you two I have the right to know."

Dean looked over at Sam as he could hear Bobby's angry voice on the phone.

"Belial knows we're coming for him…he came to town last night and turned it upside down. Things are pretty back to normal now, so I think he was trying to send us a message or something," Sam explained.

"Alright. So tell me you understand the riddle…if you do then you know what to do..."

"Yeah I get it," it made easy sense to Sam that Lorena was the key.

"Good 'cause there is one more part. There is a reason Belial chose Blackwater, Missouri. There is a hunter there by the name of Jeff. Well there _was_ a hunter…I assume he's long dead by now. The point is he had the knife Lorena needs to kill the son of a bitch. Without the knife it's useless…now you boys be careful and watch her for me, you hear?"

"Yes sir. Thanks Bobby."

Sam ended the call and looked at Dean. "Bobby's got it all figured out. He knows how to kill Belial…it's in a riddle he found."

"I hate this biblical riddle crap…just tell me what we need to know..."

He gave a laugh and wondered what Dean would do without him, "Fine…Lorena is the only one who can stop Belial and it has to be done with a particular knife."

"Why Lorena?" Dean wondered what made her so special since he was also pulled from Hell.

"Well you said you didn't like riddles…"

"Try me."

"It went something like…only that of which has died, but not felt the touch of Death's cold hand and rises to live again can disarm a Prince of Hell. And that's Lorena…Think about it Dean, Lorena never died….she was pulled into Hell and spent ten years there and when Cas pulled her out she hadn't aged a day. Granted she's a demon…but a demon with a soul and she can be killed, so she's alive."

Dean scratched his head, "whatever you say…so where do we get this knife? And that's assuming Lorena's still alive."

Sam told him about Jeff and how Belial might have already retrieved the knife from his house.

"We're almost there…we got plenty of supplies, but we need to figure out a plan. We can't screw this one up Sammy, and if Lorena isn't there…or they've killed her…then we're screwed anyway." He paused to pull the car over, "Got any bright ideas in that scholar head of yours?"

Sam sighed and wondered if Dean really wanted his ideas. To be honest he did have a few ideas, but he knew Dean wouldn't go for them.

"Well yeah…I'll go find Lorena and you find the knife. When you find the knife come find me and when I find Lorena I'll try and find you. I doubt our phones will work."

"No. Absolutely no. We are not splitting up on this one. We don't know what Belial is planning…" Dean shook his head no.

"Right…you still don't trust me do you? You think Belial is going to torture me in saying yes to Lucifer? That's it isn't it?"

"No…not entirely…at least," he paused and tried to think of something to add to that, but he couldn't. "Alright fine. I don't trust you. Look, can we have this trust issue heart to heart later?"

Sam opened the car door and went to the trunk, leaving Dean without an answer.

Dean quickly followed and unlocked the trunk, "Fine…you find her and I'll get the knife. Be quick though…I'm sure Belial is waiting for us. Maybe we should toss him a bat, you know?"

"Excuse me?"

"You know…a bat. Prince of darkness…Ozzy…bit the head off a bat…yeah I guess it wasn't that funny."

"No, not really…" Sam confirmed.

Dean wasn't sure why he allowing Sam to do this on his own. He swore to himself that he'd never let Sam go on his own, but they didn't have much of a choice.

The brothers loaded themselves up with ammo and casted each other one last look before they parted ways.

Sam didn't say it, but he had his own plan. Of course he'd try to find Lorena without getting cornered…although getting caught wasn't all bad. In fact, if he got caught they'd probably take him down to where they were holding Lorena. The downside is that he'd be weaponless.

He put a salt round under his jacket in the pocket of his shirt. That would be a safety measure. As he looked around he had a feeling he'd need it…the city was covered with demons.

They did nothing…the demons watched from the side of the road and from houses as Sam walked down the paved street. This wasn't a good sign.

Lorena sat up when she heard the doors open to the room she was being held in. Belial just kept her down there alone…unguarded, but she was convinced that something was preventing Castiel from finding her…something she couldn't see.

A demon entered the room first. It was the one that captured her in front of the motel. Then Belial entered…he looked pleased with himself.

"That happy to see me?" she laughed.

He glared at her, "No, it's not you I'm happy to see…you're just the worm on my fish pole. Once Lucifer's vessel arrives I'll have exactly what I wanted and. I have you to thank."

She frowned…Lucifer…

Another demon came in quickly and out of breath, "Your majesty, Sam Winchester has been spotted. He's coming our way. He appears alone…should the others bring him in?"

Lorena groaned and wished she could warn Sam. She looked at Belial and wondered how she could take him down.

"Good. He's early though. Oh well, bring him and we'll lock him up tight for when Lucifer comes. Be careful of that damn knife and make sure you check him good before bringing him in…." he dismissed the demon and looked at Lorena, "And as for you, your little angel friend won't be able to help you…you see Enochian Sigils surround this building and no angel will be able to enter or locate you. You can stay here…I want you to see our father, our true leader. Then you'll fight in my army against the sons of light! You can go back to doing what you do best…you'll enjoy every minute of it…tearing those angels apart like those rotting souls in Hell." He smiled casually and turned his back to her and exited the room.

The police station. Sam noticed there were more demons guarding this building than any other in town. As he started to approach the building the demons moved in.

"Now you wanna fight…" Sam took out Ruby's knife, "I'm ready…"

The demons tried to corner Sam and they were careful of the knife. Some didn't listen and they threw themselves at the hunter in an attempt to bring him down to the ground.

Once he realized they weren't coming at him, he shot them with salt rounds to weaken them. Sam had finally cleared a path to the door of the police station. He started to walk in cautiously…but was quickly taken down by a punch from a demon that sneaked up behind him.

"Good job," he congratulated the others. "Boss said the vessel isn't to be harmed…but perhaps a punch to the head will knock some sense into him."

Dean was on the other side of town searching for the knife. He went to the hunter's house and found nothing but a mess and a few dead bodies.

"This is weird…." He commented as he stood among the trashed living room. Dean looked out the broken window and wondered why he wasn't up to his ass in demons. It was obvious that the knife wasn't here.

He left the house and started walking down the road in the direction Sam had gone. The hunter held his gun ready to shoot anything that came near him.

When Dean turned the corner the sight of demons made him freeze. There were so many of them! This was definitely a trap. Even if they did get the knife and rid of Belial, they'd be eaten alive by demons…or at least he would. Not Sam of course…but then Sam would have a worse fate ahead of him.

As he continued to walk he noticed the demons were starting to run at him.

He took refuge in the closest house and lined the door with salt from the kitchen, and the windows before he ran out of salt.

"Damnit Cas I need your help…How the hell am I gonna find this knife? Lorena needs our help you winged bastard. Did you really think she could do this on her own? Even with our help," he looked around realized Castiel wasn't coming.

Dean put the weapons he had found on the table and stared at them. His thoughts were on an escape…it would be a great to get out of this house alive, let alone make it to Sam.

He gathered up the things he needed and started to make a bomb. The garage really had everything he needed…He stringed the wire from the front door to the back.

Dean busted out the front window and smiled at the demons standing by it, "front door is open boys!"

He ran quickly to the back of the house while holding the trigger to the bomb. He waited with the grin for them to break through the front door. Then….boom! When the bomb detonated he took off out the backdoor and made a run for it.

Sam groaned as he began to wake-up on the cold cement of a jail cell. His head hurt...but he knew that was the least of his problems.

"Sam…Sam wake-up," Lorena whispered.

"Lorena? Please let it be you…" He sat up and saw her sitting in the middle of a devil's trap not far from his cell. "Glad to see you're okay…Dean and I weren't sure. If it's any comfort…we're here to rescue you."

She laughed, "Loads of comfort. Where's Dean? Please tell me he didn't get caught too? 'Cause you know, this is a trap for you…they're bringing Lucifer here. Belial thinks he can get you to say yes."

Sam bit his lip. Dean's worst fear was coming to life…but Sam seemed to be the only one with confidence in himself.

He started to check his pockets for stashed items. "Yeah. Dean's looking for the knife."

"The knife?" She moved closer to him.

"Oh right. Bobby called us soon after you disappeared. He said he found a way to kill Belial. But only you can do it Lorena…and I don't think he knows that. In fact, it's because of him you can do it. You see…"

The presence of Belial stopped Sam from completing his sentence.

The hunter moved to the back of his cell and Lorena moved as far away as she could from the Prince of Hell.

"Let me explain Winchester. He's right Lorena…I didn't know it at the time, but my pulling you into Hell was the first step of my demise. You see no human, no demon, and no angel can kill a Prince of Hell. The only damned thing that can is a unique creature…one who has died, but not died from a wound, a sickness, an accident, or a possession…no sort like that. In other words, your soul wasn't reaped by a reaper. But I figured as long as you stayed busy and tormented in Hell that second part would never come to be. That was until your little angel friend managed to pull you out. Which leads me to the second qualification…You're here now, with a soul, and a living being, demon regardless. Now…the knife…the knife was a tricky thing to find. You see not just any weapon you use will kill me…no…that's too simple. This knife is special…and I have it now. All there is left to do now is send you back to Hell to tear that soul of yours apart before you join my army…and hand you over to Lucifer. It's been a real pleasure chatting with you…but I have a war to prepare for and an army to manage."


	5. Chapter 5: Hell Unleashed

Chapter 5: Hell Unleashed

"I don't think Dean is coming," Lorena confessed as they were waiting for Dean to make their move.

Sam had a plan in mind, but they needed Dean in order to go through with it. Belial seemed to be running a tight schedule and they had no idea when he planning to send Lorena back to Hell.

"He's only keeping me here because he's afraid the angels will retrieve me before Lucifer arrives…" She looked at Sam as she was lying down within the Devil's trap, facing him. "This is my fault…If Lucifer forces you to say yes it will be my fault. I'm sorry Sam."

"Don't talk like that. This is not your fault and no one is saying yes to anyone!" for the last part he was a bit frustrated. "Dean must be held up, so we're gonna have to try this on our own."

Sam removed a small pocket knife his shirt pocket and reached as far as he could outside of the cell and started to scratch away at the Devil's trap as best as could.

Once she was free she used her strength to open the cell door that was keeping Sam locked up.

"We need Ruby's knife in order to get past the demons…" Sam led them outside the cell area and they began creeping around to get an assessment of the police station.

Being in this police station brought back memories of Lilith and Henriksen. He quickly shook them off once he spotted two demons taking a close look at Ruby's knife. Sam signaled to Lorena to take out the demon's partner while he grabbed the knife.

The huntress sneaked up on the demon and covered its mouth with her hand, while Sam hit the other demon on the head with a nearby book. With the knife on the floor it was a race…Sam won and both demons were stabbed within seconds.

"That was simple enough," she smiled.

He gripped the knife tightly, "Yeah…Let's go find Dean."

The pair didn't have to search long for Dean Winchester.

"Get your damn hands off of me!" Dean shouted.

Three demons were bringing in the older Winchester and he was putting up quite a fight. This was their cue strike.

Sam went for the demon holding Dean's weapons and Lorena went for two demons pulling him to the jail cells.

"Let. Him. Go!" She growled as she just kept stabbing them with the knife Sam had had dropped in his struggle.

"Woah, woah. Slow down there kid," Dean pulled her away from the dead bodies and took the knife so he could stab the demon that had Sam pinned against a wall.

Lorena watched him take the demon down….a hot shiver went through her body as the scene brought painful memories of Hell.

"What took you so long?" Sam asked.

"I was looking for the knife….then I had a whole town of demons on my ass."

"Yeah. Well that's going to be least of our problems if we don't take care of this soon. Belial has the knife and he knows everything. If he wanted to…he could send her down to Hell faster than we can blink."

"What about Cas? Where the hell is his angel ass anyway?"

"This place is angel proof…so help from Cas is out, but we've also got to wrap this up quick before Lucifer shows up. Belial sent word that he had me…" Sam rolled his eyes.

"Damn. There is just no good way of looking at this. You also owe me an 'I told you so' if we survive this," Dean then looked around as he thought he heard something.

Lorena's eyes went black, "Someone is watching us..."

"I don't like the sound of that," Dean took out his gun.

Sam felt close to useless at the point. Lucifer was coming for him, Lorena was in danger, and as was Dean. The thought of the power he could have with demon blood was taunting him as it covered the floor.

"Let's split up," Sam suggested, but Dean just shook his head.

"No. We tried that and look where we are now…I'm not leaving you two alone."

When Dean turned to point at Lorena there was no one there…

"Damnit…not again," he cursed and quickly started searching nearby.

She was nowhere to be found and the brothers were dumbfounded by her second disappearance. This time they figured she had a plan to get the knife back, so the brothers started moving in a different direction in the police station.

Lorena was already at a different section of the station by this point. She had found out where Belial was and could see the knife. At just the sight of it…she knew it belonged to her. It was an unexplainable feeling. There was no way Lorena could simply walk in with all those demons standing by him.

Sam and Dean provided the best distraction….there was a loud crashing sound. No one in the room could figure out what it was…so Belial thought it could be the arrival of Lucifer.

"Go check on it," he ordered them.

Once everyone was gone Lorena stepped into the room.

Belial smiled and held up the knife, "looking for this? I thought you might….but I didn't think you were stupid enough to just walk in here and think you could take it from me."

She shook her head, "No, I didn't…I actually want to make a deal with you."

"Oh?"

Lorena took a few steps closer, "If you let me stay…I promise to serve Lucifer."

He laughed, "We'll see what he has to say about that. If he rejects your offer I'll kill you on the spot. 'Cause you know what? I wouldn't put it past your angel friends to bring you back here to kill me again."

"I understand. I just don't want to go back to Hell. That's not where I'm meant to be and if I have to work for Lucifer to stay here…then I will," she frowned in defeat.

Belial seemed pleased, "Is that what you think? 'Cause I disagree Lorena. You belong in Hell as much as the next demon as far as I'm concerned. You don't believe me? Perhaps you're forgetting the screams of the tortured souls below?"

Lorena closed her eyes for a moment as she breathed in. She could smell the burning flesh…the blood…the sound of tearing flesh. "I remember."

Lorena opened her black eyes and took a few more sneaky steps towards the Prince of Darkness. She even placed a hand upon his shoulder; "It's a shame that you don't trust me…" her voice was sweet talking him.

The demon gave a growl and shrugged her off. "I have plenty of demons…I don't need stink like you around."

That's when two demons dragged Sam and Dean into the room with guns pointed at the back of their heads. Belial didn't seem too happy to see the demon pointing a gun at Sam's head.

"What do you think you're doing!" His voice was strong and threatening…and within the second the demon was gone…he just vanished.

Sam, Dean, and Lorena were in shock. It could happen that quickly. Lorena could be there and gone in a second. When Belial stood up in a fit of rage, the knife was left unguarded on a table.

With supernatural speed, Lorena grabbed the knife and held it tight. She stared at Belial's back…This was her moment.

"DIE YOU BASTARD! DIE FOR WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO ME….TO MY FATHER! THIS IS FOR HIM!" she jabbed the knife into his chest once he turned around. She twisted the knife and Belial groaned in pain as he grabbed her arm.

She screamed in pain and the knife began cutting into Belial as she pulled down. By now the demon was dead as his insides were falling to the floor as she cut him more.

Some demons came running to see what was happening…once they saw Lorena holding the knife, they ran as fast as they could out of the police station.

When she pulled the knife out, Belial's body began to glow…then there was sudden boom and he was gone.

She dropped the knife and rubbed the stain where Belial's body had been. Lorena wasn't quite finished with him yet…but he was gone. It wasn't the revenge she had planned.

Sam bent down to her and Lorena wrapped her arms around him as she shook.

"It's over…he's gone…"

Sam nodded and returned the hug.

Dean sighed as he knew there was more than just anger inside Lorena…It was Hell.

"I'd hate to break this up, but let's get out of here; this place is giving me the creeps."

The three of them walked quietly out of the deserted town and back to Impala.

"Considering the odds…I think we did pretty good," Dean said proudly.

Lorena glared at him and Sam shook his head. There were a lot of close calls and they just got lucky. Dean knew it too, but he really didn't believe in luck…he believed in skill.

A figure was standing by the Impala. It was Castiel…he looked disheveled and worried.

"Is Belial dead? I wasn't able to enter…" He was asked Lorena.

"Yeah….he's dead," She barely murmured.

"Is there something wrong?" he then looked up at Sam and Dean, having a feeling they were responsible for something.

"Don't look at us..." Dean opened the door to his car.

"No, nothing's wrong."

She looked at the angel patiently. Lorena couldn't help but think about Hell…about the secretive pleasure she took from killing those demons and gutting Belial.

Castiel nodded, "Good. Here is the location of your father…he's moved since the facility he was in shut down. I think you could imagine why…" his turned to Sam and Dean as he handed them the address. "I will meet you there."

Like that, he was gone.

Dean looked at the paper and showed it Sam, "It's not too far….about a two days drive from here."

"Great," Sam took a look at it as he got in the car.

Lorena took to the back seat and laid down. "Why didn't he fix me? I'm still a demon. My father is going to kill me…what's the use? He'll just send me back to Hell before I can even get a word in."  
"It won't be like that…I'll make sure of it," Dean tried to assure her.

"I thought Castiel was going to make things right," she sighed and closed her eyes, "Sometimes I wonder if this is even real….like maybe I've finally lost my mind down there."

"Castiel is a good guy, he wouldn't lie to you," was all Sam could respond with.

As the skies darkened, the boys took turns driving as Lorena slept in the backseat. She slept like she hadn't slept in years; not even Dean's ACDC made her stir.

"What do you think?" The older brother looked over in the passenger seat.

"I think he'll be skeptical at first. He's a hunter and he'll react like Bobby did when he saw her, or like when you came back from Hell. Problem is…that won't make this easy because she is a demon. We just have to hope he trusts us when we tell him the truth." Sam looked down at his phone, "I have a strange feeling about this though. I can't quite put my finger on."

"What do mean? Feeling about what?"

"There's something Cas isn't telling us. Why else is staying so far away? And so tight lipped? I don't know…I've just seen that look before."

He gave Sam a surprised look, "You can tell all that from a look? No wonder chicks don't like you."

"I'm serious Dean, come on. Cas and his angel friends didn't save Lorena just so she could kill some demon and go to Heaven. Now you…you can understand why, but Lorena's been in Hell for ten years and that demon has also been around for way longer than that. Why now?"

Dean was beginning to see Sam's point, but all of these 'what ifs' made his head ache. "We'll figure it out when we get there. Besides…if Cas is keeping a secret then it can't be good."

He checked in the back seat to see Lorena trembling in the back seat as she slept. "We don't make a move until she's safe."

Dean looked to Sam with concern, "Damn she sleeps a lot. Should we wake her up? She's been shaking for a while now."

Sam had a sudden flashback of what happened back at the motel when Lorena started shaking in her sleep. His body still ached from that…

"Uh….no, no we should let her sleep," he turned back around and faced forward with a straight look on his face.

Dean sensed there something behind that strange response, but he honestly didn't care to find out why…at least not after walking in on them in bed together.

They traveled the rest of the way in silence as Sam continued to stare out the window and Dean watched the road. He thought about his dad and the countless times he wanted to go on a hunt when he was little….no wonder his father would get so upset. He had seen what happened to Martin.


	6. Chapter 6: The Reunion

Chapter 6: The Reunion

"Wow. Are you sure this is the place? It looks like…"

"A prison?" Dean offered.

"Yeah…" Lorena looked up at the four story building that seemed more like a stop on any ghost hunting tour.

"Cas said this was the place. He was transferred after the other one shut down just after we left. Believe me when I say this place looks a lot nicer than the old one."

She just shook her head at Dean and continued to walk past Sam and towards the front entrance of the mental hospital.

There was a man at the front desk working the phones; she waited patiently for him to finish.

"Can I help you?"

"Yeah. I'm…I mean…we are here to see our father. His name is Martin Creaser. I'm Lorena and this is Sam and Dean. Is it possible to visit him?"

"Sure. Just sign in here and fill this out," the man presented her with a clipboard and a sign in sheet.

Lorena took a seat across from Sam and Dean and signed a few forms before returning to the window.

"Wait till you're called…" The guy said before picking up the phone.

She rubbed eyes and wanted to pinch herself as the moment was finally here. Lorena wondered what he looked like…if he still acted the same…sounded the same. It had been so long since she had heard his voice. What would she say to him? Anger never crossed her mind…Lorena was never angry with her father for what happened to her. Her mind was just a mess of thoughts as they waited.

Sam looked over at Dean and wondered if he had a plan of some sort. He knew this could go horribly wrong.

"Martin Creaser." Someone emerged from a locked door and called out to them.

Lorena jumped up from the chair in a nervous fit. Sam and Dean were close behind; the younger brother put a hand on her shoulder.

"I think it's best we go first. We need to take this slow and make sure he doesn't do anything...rash," Dean warned.

She nodded to Dean and let them go first. Lorena was the last to walk into the large open room that was filled with tables and chairs. The place was empty….except for one man that sat along in a seat by a bared window. He looked thin…tired…and much older than she remembered.

"Hey Martin…" Dean said joyously as he walked out ahead of the other two. "How are things these days?"

Martin looked up at Dean, "Do you think this is some kind of joke? They said my daughter and two sons were here to see me. You have some nerve Dean…Just go…just leave me alone. I don't want any part of hunting and whatever it is…I'm sure Bobby Singer knows more than I do."

He couldn't see Lorena, as she stayed behind a partition.

Dean took a seat across from him and placed his arms on the table. "Hear me out. Just listen to what I have to say…if you choose not to believe me…then we'll leave. Alright?"

Martin continued to keep his eyes fixed on the trees outside the window. "Fine."

He took a deep breath and looked back at Sam and Lorena. "Mr. Creaser. I am aware of what happened to your daughter. I think I understand why you want nothing to do with hunting. I'm really sorry for your loss. Your daughter…Lorena…She's…."

Dean couldn't find the words to tell Martin what had happened over the past few days.

"Daddy?" Lorena couldn't hold back and showed herself. "Daddy it's me…"

Martin finally turned away from the window and took in the sight of Lorena. "No…It couldn't be." He was seemingly horrified at the figure standing before him. "This is some kind of trick. You demons haven't caused me enough pain? You leave my little girl alone. You…you come here looking like her thinking I won't send you back to Hell? Is that it?"

Martin stood up in a fit of rage and Dean quickly got between.

"Listen Martin…hold on for a minute."

"Listen to him," she pleaded, "Sam and Dean have brought me back to you…an angel…it was an angel that pulled me out of Hell. He's given me a chance to see mom again…to see you again."

Her father seemed to relax as her voice quivered with emotion. It was suddenly becoming real to him.

"An angel? How is it possible?" Martin was still suspicious, but Dean allowed him to move forward and touch Lorena's shoulder. "You look…no older than the day I lost you…it's not possible."

Lorena felt comforted by his familiar touch, "It is…anything is possible. I watched John Winchester escape Hell…Dean get pulled out of Hell…and now the angels have rescued me too. I was able to get revenge on the damned demon that pulled me in. Now no one can throw me back down there. After so many years…It just feels good to breathe."

Martin smiled and gave her a hug, "my little girl…I've missed you so so so much! You have no idea what losing you meant to me. What that demon did to your father. It just wasn't enough that he took you away from me…no…he tortured me."

She started to cry as she could hear the pain in his voice. He struggled so much and she knew most of what he had gone through.

Sam and Dean had taken a few steps back to give them some privacy. The brothers actually thought this was going well….well that thought didn't last long.

Martin ran at Dean when he wasn't paying attention and took his gun. Lorena didn't realize what he was doing until the gun was pointed at her.

"What are you doing?" She questioned hysterically.

"You're not my daughter! I can smell the sulfur. You think I'm stupid? I know you're a demon. I was a hunter for many years before I quit. Believe me when I say I can smell a demon a mile away."

"Woah…" Dean was a little pissed that Martin grabbed his gun so easily. "Don't shoot…_please_ don't shoot."

"Martin, there is something we didn't mention," Sam began to say.

Lorena's eyes turned black, "You're right. I am a demon, but I'm still Lorena; I'm still your daughter through and through. It's complicated actually…"

"You have ten seconds to explain yourself…then I send your ass back to Hell!" he threatened.

She looked at Sam and Dean quickly before turning back to her father. "I've been in Hell…for a very long time. Ten years is a lot longer in Hell. Try one thousand and two hundred years. No matter how strong or how pure you are…no one can withstand torture for that long. So I gave in and I tortured…I enjoyed hurting others because I was just so damn tired of the pain," she admitted, "but there is a way to reverse it…Castiel pulled me out and said I'd be saved if I stopped that demon, and I did! He's around here somewhere waiting, so he can let me go home. Please believe me."

Martin lowered the gun as Lorena's wet eyes looked into his soul. He wanted to believe it was her so much…the way she looked at him, sounded, and acted…but there was something noticeably different about her that he just couldn't put his finger on. It was the demon. It had to be the demon. It was aura about her the rubbed him the wrong way and made her uncanny to him.

"I'm supposed to believe some angel pulled you out from the depths of Hell so you could be redeemed?" Martin started to laugh.

Lorena began to cry more and Sam put a hand on her shoulder.

"Shhh it's alright," he said as he tried to calm her down.

"Look…can we put the gun down on the table?" Dean calmly said with his hands out.

Martin didn't move. "That thing is a demon pretending to be MY daughter. No, I'm not putting the gun down, nor am I going to believe the nonsense she's filled your heads with."

"I was afraid of this…." Castiel said as he appeared behind Martin.

Martin jumped in surprise and fired the gun by accident. It struck Lorena in the chest.

She cried out in pain and she sank to the floor in Sam's arms as the bullet burned through her body.

Dean cursed as he realized they were iron rounds from when they had been hunting a ghost.

Lorena rose back to her feet, her eyes were black. The demon in her was ready to send them all across the room, but Castiel's touch calmed her.

He frowned, "Humans have an interesting way of showing affection to one another…"

His touch healed her and he continued to stand by her, "your daughter is telling the truth. My name is Castiel and I serve Heaven. I helped to pull your daughter out from the pit of Hell."

Martin looked at Castiel astonished by what he had done to her wound, and so he set the gun down. No demon could do that.

"My…mistake…" he was speechless. "It's…really you? Are you really an angel?"

As he started to walk closer…Lorena noticed the changes in him as he looked at her differently now.

Slowly…Martin wrapped his arms around his daughter for the first time in what seemed like forever. Lorena closed her eyes and enjoyed the familiar feeling. Familial love. Unconditional love. The absence of it made her appreciate it all the more.

"I'm so sorry…sorry for leaving you…for what he did to you," she apologized.

"No hunny, no need to apologize. It was my fault for taking you on that hunt. You should have been at home, or working a real job…not a hunter. I should have been a more responsible father to you."

Lorena smiled, "Dad I wanted to do this. I wanted to help you out remember? I just felt better knowing you weren't hunting alone. It's no one's fault for what happened to me. I knew the risk when I got in that car; I was old enough to make those decisions."

Martin nodded and wiped a tear from his eye, "It's just…it's really you. I'm just in shock at all of this…" he then looked towards Sam, Dean and Castiel.

"Yeah…us too. We didn't even know you had a daughter…Bobby is actually the one who told us what happened."

Lorena took a seat and told her father all of the things and people she saw in Hell. She left out the part about Dean…she wanted to block it out from her mind, but she did tell him about John Winchester.

Castiel had been called back to Heaven, but when he returned things sounded urgent.

"I'm sorry but it's time to say your goodbyes…" he sounded out of breath and rushed.

Sam and Dean looked at him confused as Cas paced around the room.

"What's your problem?" Dean ventured to ask.

"Deadline has come up….The vessel needs to be purified before Sariel arrives."

"What? Which vessel? Who's Sariel?"

Castiel glared at Dean for those comments, "She's one of the lesser known archangels of Heaven. She assigned me to retrieve her only obtainable vessel and prepare it for her use."

"Good or bag angel? 'cause honestly I can't tell what side you bastards are on anymore" Dean demanded to know.

Sam was lost in thought, "Sariel is a she?"

Cas sighed, "Good…and your translations for a lack of better words…suck."

Dean was visibly pissed, "Are you trying to tell me…that you rescued this poor girl from Hell and promised her Heaven and redemption, but instead some angel is gonna riding her ass through the Apocalypse? This is low Cas….don't you think the girl has been through enough?"

Lorena and Martin paused their conversation to hear what Dean was shouting about. She stood back up and went over to them, "What's wrong?"

Dean was already fired up and didn't take his eyes off Castiel.

Castiel raised his fingers to Dean in a warning…that if he didn't calm down, Cas would be forced to put him to sleep.

"Woah…" Sam tried to pull Dean away, "Let's calm down before we make any decisions here."

"The decision has already been made. Lorena is Sariel's vessel and if she agrees to it…it will be done," the angel's voice was firm.

"A vessel?" Lorena raised her brows. "You mean…like the Winchesters?"

Sam and Dean had filled Lorena in on the Apocalypse, which included them being the vessels of Michael and Lucifer. She knew that Castiel was an angel, but that his physical appearance was just that of his vessel.

"Somewhat. Not as great of importance…Michael and Lucifer are much more powerful. She is one of the archangels…the angel of divine face...the protector...among many other things," he looked over at Lorena. "Will you allow Sariel to claim you as her vessel? You being her only living vessel."

"Don't you dare say 'yes' damnit!" Dean cursed, "those assholes will put you through more pain and torment and when they're done with you…they'll leave you a slobbering mess."

Castiel moved closer to Lorena to perform the purification. His hand touched her head as he closed his eyes, "this will hurt a lot."

His warning was an understatement. Cas inserted his right hand into her chest and grabbed hold of her soul.

The young woman screamed in pain as the holy vessel merged with hers. Lorena's black eyes were forced open and her body appeared frozen as it glowed. Then her mouth opened and a thick cloud of black smoke poured from her and evaporated into the concrete floor below.

Cas removed his hand and she collapsed onto the floor. The others were stunned by what they had just witnessed.

Lorena slowly recovered herself and finally felt human again. This was a miracle and she shared a hug with her father.

"If I do this…I can help. I can make up for everything that I did down there. And I can stop other demons from doing what they did to us and so many other people," she confessed.

Martin wasn't sure about this. "What are our options?" he asked the angel.

Cas nodded knowing this would be asked. "Two options…you either accept Sariel and serve the will of Heaven, or face judgment day."

She frowned…redemption was a lie. "You lied to me, didn't you? I thought you said if I destroyed the demon I'd be able to enter Heaven?"

"No. I simply gave you the opportunity to redeem yourself for your past deeds. It is not my decision to make. But if you do choose to do this…Sariel will promise to protect your father in return for your 'yes'."

Lorena looked at her father as Sam and Dean stood in reluctant silence.

"Do what you feel is right," he managed to smile as he put hand on her shoulder. "I always knew you were my little angel."

Tears were coming again as she knew that either way she would be leaving her father again.

"I don't wanna leave you again. I worry about you daddy….You're all alone here and this place…this isn't a life."

It broke his heart to hear his daughter talk like this. "You're right…I was sick, but I'm better now…Now that I know you're safe. You don't have to worry about me."

She nodded, "okay..okay." Lorena turned around and looked at Sam and Dean. "I need to do this guys…I know you must hate me for wanting to do this. I've been on the other side of this war for so long…I wanna be on the right team now; I want to make a difference for the good this time."

Sam was the first to give Lorena a hug, "I understand. If this is something you feel you have to do then do it. We can only speak for what we've seen…and saying yes will not be a walk in the park. Just hang in there and know that you'll soon be where you belong."

As Sam stepped away and Dean came forward and noticed the hesitation Lorena still had towards him.

"What you're doing is brave. I know I'm going to fight Michael as best I can…because I need to protect my brother from that bastard. I know a lot of people will die if this war really does happen. I hope the angel squad takes Lucifer down…but it seems like the more I learn, the more I realize that will never happen. What can I say? I'm a realist," he gave a short laugh. "But you…you prove me wrong okay? Who knows…maybe I'll be seeing you again soon."

"I better not," she gave him a stern look. "Don't give up the fight.." Lorena added to the both of them.

"You need to leave…." The angel warned them.

Lorena cleared her voice, "Yes…I'm saying to Sariel."

The moment the statement left her lips the building began to tremble. The lights flickered and eventually blew out.

Martin looked around in terror while Sam and Dean already had their fingers in their ears…They worked their way towards Martin and tried to warn him, but it was too late. They were told to leave, but none of them wanted to.

The deafening sound was louder than ever. Martin put his hands over his ears in pain…

Lorena and Cas were soon the only ones standing. The noise didn't bother her as the archangel was coming down from the Heavens.

"Thanks Cas…thanks for saving me," she said before the brilliant white light came through the windows.

Lorena's body glowed as she looked up towards the ceiling. In a few seconds…the light and sound were gone.

Martin, Sam, and Dean unshielded their eyes and wiped the blood from their nose and ears as they stood up.

Sariel looked over at them.

It looked like Lorena, but the eyes…the young woman's soft eyes were now hard and focused.

"She's safe now….You did a good job," she said to Martin.

When she looked at Dean the angel cracked a smile, "Michael knows you'll make the right decision when the time is right. Deep down, you know that he is the only one who can stop Lucifer from destroying the world."

Sam naturally stayed in the background, but Sarial wasn't going to let him go unnoticed.

"I see you Sam…Don't worry…You don't have to be afraid of me."

The angel walked closer to Sam and touched his cheek lovingly, "I see why you're Lucifer's vessel…you have that fire in you to be free, to be powerful. It's a good quality to have. With that drive comes a darkness you can't deny."

Sam gulped and shifted his weight uncomfortably. "I…I know that, but I am nothing like him.." the anger in him made his body tremble. "NOTHING!" He smacked her hand and away and stormed out.

Dean sighed and Castiel shook his head.

Sariel didn't react...she watched him leave before looking to Cas, "I'm going to seek him out and assess the damages so far. See you soon." She left.

Martin looked at the void…Lorena was gone now. He took a seat in awe of what just occurred. To any other person it would have been unbelievable…just a dream. But being a hunter meant understanding what was thought to be unbelievable. It gave him a sense of closure...just the thought of knowing his daughter was no longer a prisoner of Hell.

"Thank you…Castiel. It means so much to me that you've saved my daughter."

The angel nodded, "Like I told her…her strength was immense. She is an amazing woman that surprised all of us. Now we must leave quickly…" he went over to Martin and put a hand on his shoulder, "I'm taking Martin to some place safe; I suggest you two get out of town as quickly as possible…"

The brothers slowly left the hospital and got in the car. "I still don't think it was right…"

Sam was too deep in thought to respond…thinking about what the angel had said to him.

"Hello? Anyone home in there?" Dean teased.

"Oh. Yeah. Right," he finally responded.

"You letting that angel mess with your head?"

"No…course not," Sam hated how Dean always knew what was on his mind.

"Well Cas really screwed with us this time….and REALLY screwed Lorena over. Do you think we did the right thing back there?"

Sam looked over at him, "Wasn't our decision to make. Only Lorena knew the right thing for her. You know Dean, not everyone is like us."

"You think?"

"At least she's not in Hell anymore and she's being given a chance at something," Sam agreed with his brother to some extent.

"That's true, but having some angel ride your ass isn't a picnic either. I just don't get why she'd agree to that."

Sam shook his head as Dean just couldn't understand that Lorena wanted to do something to help the cause. It was a brave thing to do in his opinion because Lorena didn't have to put herself in this fight. Sometimes he wished there was a way for him to redeem himself like that…to make up for letting Lucifer out of the cage and the death of so many innocent people.

When Dean looked in his rearview mirror a large storm of black smoke was heading towards them.

"Awe shit…shit…shit! Sam…hold on tight," Dean floored the gas pedal.


End file.
